RWBY: Stories From Haven Academy: Part 1 SAFR
by No1OfConsequence
Summary: In the world of RWBY, there are four Academies. You know of Beacon, but do you know Haven? Here, teams SAFR and CCRE will show you how similar and different Haven is to Beacon. And you'll find some laughs along the way. So sit back, relax, and enjoy Stories From Haven Academy Part 1. Rated "T" for thematic elements. Also, cameos from RWBY will be found throughout.
1. Disclaimer

**DISCLAIMER:**

**Watch RWBY volumes 1 &amp; 2 before reading. Haven Academy is canon in the world of RWBY, and the descriptions and characters are only fan speculations. I only own the OCs that I have come up with that include team SAFR, team CCRE, and several minor characters that are not in the show. Please enjoy the writings**.


	2. Chapter 1: To Haven

Storm got up, excited by what day it was. "It's the day we've been waiting for!" Storm said as he climbed down the ladder on the side of his bunk bed. He was talking to his twin brother, Rain, who was lying on the bottom bunk.

"Ugh, can't it be later?" Rain said, still wanting to sleep.

"Nope, but I'll let you sleep in and miss the airship to Haven."

"Fine," Rain said in a low, frustrated voice.

Storm exited the room he and his brother shared, went to the bathroom, and then went downstairs. No one else was up, at least if they were, they were not home. He walked to the kitchen, grabbed a bowl from the cabinet, a spoon from one of the draws, cereal, milk from the refrigerator, and had breakfast.  
Storm and his brother had been admitted into the prestigious Haven Academy, which was the cause of Storm's excitement. He had trained at Sanctum for as long as was necessary along with his brother, and now was going to Haven to further his training. It was a great honor to be accepted into Haven Academy, so Storm was getting ready for the day with a regular breakfast.

Rain slumped to the bottom of the stairs just as Storm was finishing his bowl of cereal. He had changed from his pajamas to his combat gear; a blue buttoned up shirt with black slacks, a black fedora, black fingerless gloves, a black jacket, and black exercise shoes. Storm said nothing as he drank the last of the milk in his bowl, and handed it, along with the spoon, to Rain. Rain took the dishes, thoroughly washed them, and used them for his breakfast, a bowl of different cereal. Storm then went back to his room, changed into his own combat gear, and came back down.

Storm's combat gear was a red sweater, blue jeans, white exercise shoes, and white armor. Around his shoulders were the straps of a backpack containing something quite important to his future career as a Huntsman. "Please tell me you aren't bringing all your weapons to Haven," Rain said, pausing from his breakfast.

"No. Just the really good ones," Storm replied. "I've learned my lesson that anything that turns into a grenade is probably not going to help me in any regards." Storm suppressed the memory of his one attempt to make a gauntlet that turned into grenade that one night. "So, you're bringing Bolt Breaker with you, right?"

"Of course I am; we're not all as crazy as you," Rain said. Storm really liked to make weapons, and that was something he excelled at. However, the only weapons he had in his backpack were the ones that worked consistently enough to use a combat school. He would, however, send for his work-in-progresses as soon as he could.

* * *

The airship was nearing Haven Academy, and all Azura could think about was how she really didn't want to be on the airship any longer. It was so boring, and yet so noisy as to make it impossible to take a nap. There were a few people who looked interesting, though. Like the two guys who were over at the window, whose faces looked almost exactly alike, other than the differences in hairstyles and a few, small differences with their features.

Another interesting looking fellow was a blue-haired guy with goggles resting just above his eyes, and was heading straight for Azura. "What's up?" the teen said in what seemed like an overly suave voice.

"This airship, I guess," Azura replied, not taking her hands out of the pockets of her duster. The blue haired guy chuckled.  
"You know, I can tell we have something in common already.

"What, we both have blue hair?"

"Yeah, and we're both funny. I'm Neptune, by the way."

"Azura. And, if you could, leave me alone." Azura's patience had run out.

"Oh, come on, give me a chance."

"I already gave you one by not leaving when you came over here. Good day." Azura then removed herself from that section of the airship.

Distracted by the view that she had forgotten, Azura bumped into someone new, almost knocking her over. She seemed to be some kind of bird Faunus, with white hair and feathers on her head. On her back looked like two mechanical wings that Azura assumed was her weapon. Looking hurt, she started moving away, when Azura stopped her. "I'm sorry," Azura said. This stopped the Faunus in her tracks.

"You're… You're sorry?" the Faunus said in a very meek sounding voice.

"Yes, I'm sorry for knocking into you."

"Usually people want me to apologize." The Faunas was honestly seemed confused by this.

"Well, consider this the new usual." It cross Azura's mind that perhaps this Faunas never had a friend before, because of the prejudice that Faunas somehow got. She had learned that humans would always fear what they don't understand, and suppress what they fear. That and they were probably still sore how no matter how many wars they waged, Faunas always won. Azura decided she should be friendly towards the Faunas. "I'm Azura." Azura put her hand forward with intentions to shake the faunas' hand.

"My name is Feather," the Faunus said, accepting the handshake.

"Very… appropriate name."

"Thank you. Especially for not making fun of me."

"Hey, if anyone does make fun of you, let me know, and I'll make sure they don't leave without a few new bruises."

A hologram appeared nearby, catching all the attention of the room. It was of someone Azura didn't recognize, and didn't pay attention to. Azura was more distracted by the various people in the room, and how outlandish they looked compared to her. The hologram gave a small speech about how they were the next generation of protectors of the world, and disappeared.

Outside, all Azura could see was the giant, blue sea. However, if Azura looked far enough ahead, she could see their destination: Haven Academy


	3. Chapter 2: New Students

**I apologize for posting the last chapter when I did. I had no idea that Monty Oum had died at the time I posted it, and I apologize if I was being insensitive. Please also note that chapters 1-15 had been written before Monty Oum's death, and I have decided not to change them. I am continuing the posting of these chapters, now in honor of Monty Oum. I did not know him, but I believe that he would be glad that the fanbase has decided to try and speculate what else might be in the world of RWBY, and put their speculations in novel form. Now please, enjoy chapter two of Stories From Haven Academy.**

* * *

Feather walked down the boarding ramp of the airship, taking in her surroundings. Haven Academy looked imposing, being built on the side of a mountain right next to the landlocked sea to the west. While some may have wanted to take a boat to the academy instead of an airship, there were vicious water Grimm underneath the waves, preventing travel by water.

Feather tried being as unnoticeable as possible, but it was not to last. A large teen, with broad shoulders came up behind Feather, and pushed her out of the way. This was obviously not for getting into the academy as soon as possible, as there was more than enough space on either side her to go around. "Hey! Did you just try to block me?" the teen said, stopping both of them.

"No, I didn't mean to," Feather said, backing up.

"Looks like I'll have to teach you a lesson, Faunus," the larger teen said.

The teen began cracking his knuckles when another boy spoke up behind her. "Excuse me, but could you not be expelled on the first day of school?" The owner of the voice walked into view of Feather, and she didn't like her chances. The owner of the voice was an unimpressive looking boy, with a red sweater, blue jeans, white armor, and a blue backpack.

"Like either of you'd have the nerve to report me," the larger teen said.

"Maybe, maybe not, but one thing's for sure: you aren't going to harm anyone today," the smaller teen said.

"Yeah right!" The larger teen threw a punch at the smaller boy. The sweater wearing teen was oddly quick, as he caught the punch heading for him with a gauntleted hand, which was obviously powered.

"Now, do you want to try that again?" the smaller said.

The larger retracted his fist and said, "I've got better things to do," and walked off.

"I'm Storm, by the way," the remaining teen said.

"I am named Feather," Feather replied and shook Storm's hand. "Thank you for saving me."

"My parents always told me to help people in need, and it seemed like you needed help just then."

"Thank you anyway, but I have to be going somewhere else."

"Okay, see you later, I guess," Storm said.

"See you later," Feather replied, and continued her walk down towards the school. This first day was going well so far for Feather. She had already met two friends who were willing to protect her, and was about to continue into the school when something happened. Someone came bursting out of the airship, and down the loading ramp. He stood atop a hammer of some kind, spewing fire from out of it. He sped off the loading ramp, past the other students, and right on his way into the school.

Behind Feather, Azura spoke. "Ugh, transfer from Vale, they're always this obnoxious." Feather decided not to ask why she was not there to help her with the bully earlier, as she didn't want to upset her new friend. "I should know, my family has friends from Vale who occasionally visit, and they always bring their daughter, Nora, the girl who only eats sugar and energy drinks."

"Let's go inside," Azura said. Feather nodded, and the two went into a large audience hall where all the other students were gathering.

* * *

Storm and Rain talking about how they should be on the same team, when a man stepped out onto the of the audience hall stage. He was a cat Faunus, with golden hair, and a regal appearance. "I am Headmaster Lionel Forester," the man onstage said as he introduced himself. "For each of you, it is the first time you have ever set foot in Haven Academy, and it is my honor to welcome you here. But, it is my duty to also tell you that you must be wary, for ignorance can claim any one of you students. Your time here will either show you what hides in the darkness so that you can overcome it, or you will be too cowardly to face even your own shadow." And with that, Forester walked off the stage, and disappeared from sight.

Then, a woman dressed in yellow walked on stage. "Dorms will be assigned to you after you pass initiation. For now, you will have to stay in the ballroom for the night," the woman said, and left.

* * *

Feather positioned herself above everyone, in the rafters of the ballroom. She did not like how they simply assumed that everyone would be okay with sleeping in the same room as everyone else, and had done something about it. While some might have been too scared to do what she did, she had slept in even higher places than this. She suppressed the sudden rush of memories, and unrolled her sleeping bag.

When she had completely unrolled it, she found a book where her head would go. It was a book she had been reading for a very long time, and had stopped a while ago to focus on her studies. The book title was "The Free Man", and was about a Faunus overcoming all the prejudices of Mistral, to become something greater. There was a note poking out of the pages of the book. Feather removed the piece of paper, and read it. "Don't think I would let you go without giving you something read –Mom," the note said. A smile came to Feather's face after reading it. Her mother was a librarian, one of the few jobs that she could get. She had always made sure her daughter left with a new book to read in her hands.

With that pleasant memory, she retired to sleep.


	4. Chapter 3: Initiation

**Here you are: chapter 3.**

* * *

Azura, Feather, and several others all stood in a row, assembled in front of the sea. Headmaster Forester walked out in front of them. "The initiation begins now," the Headmaster said. "Your objective is to get to that island." Forester pointed to an island a little over a mile away. "On that island is a shipwreck with relics in it. Each of you will find a partner, and retrieve one of the relics. Once you have gotten your relic, you will return to the east side of the island where an airship will be waiting to pick up the surviving students." Surviving?

"Um, sir?" Feather said, just as meek as yesterday.

"Yes, student?" Lionel replied.

"Who are our partners?"

"Good question. Your partner is the first person you make eye contact with." Azura just thought that that was a horrible way to choose partners. "Now, are we ready to begin?"

"Oh, yeah, we're ready," Azura said, and several others echoed similar words.

"Good, happy landings." And suddenly, the platforms they were standing on started to shoot students into the air, and towards the island.

* * *

As much fun as flying is, falling was worse in Storm's opinion. He pulled out his shield, Typhoon, and its parts shifted into a Gatling gun. He pointed it forward, and fired it at the island to slow his fall. He also fired a burst of propulsion from his shin guards, because he had flight systems installed, to help him slow down. It just tore apart to underbrush and tree there, it slowed him down enough so that when he did land, he rolled, and got up without serious injury. Above him were his fellow classmates, one of which looked very desperate to land.

* * *

Next to her, Feather deployed her wings, and stopped suddenly. Azura, however, would have a harder time landing. Her landing strategy had never been tested, so she had no idea if it was going to work. She drew out her revolver, Standoff, and it shifted in her hand into a handle. She pressed a button on the handle, and a blade made out of Dust appeared. She stabbed the blade into the first tree she hit, and it exploded. The explosion slowed her down, and she landed feet first in a crouched position.

All around her were crab-like Grimm. While the exact name of their type escaped her at the moment, they were still Grimm. She counted them, and there were exactly six. Worry crept onto her face. She shifted her Dust blade back into the revolver, and started shooting at the Grimm. One shot hit one of the crabs, going right through, and killed it. She did the same for each of them except the last one, behind her. It lunged its pincers forward, and she rolled away from it. She had emptied the six chambers of her weapon, and now was frantically trying to reload. But she knew if she didn't, she wouldn't survive this fight.

* * *

Storm was wandering through the forest, when a pack of Grimm ambushed him. They were Beowolves, a very common Grimm that could be found almost anywhere. He drew his sword, Excelsior, and stabbed the first one in the mouth. He shifted it to its rifle form, and started firing at the Beowolves, all the while, backing up to avoid the Beowolves' claws.

Storm stumbled into a clearing where he could tell how many Grimm there were. There was a lot more than just one pack: there was at least sixteen Grimm coming after him, not counting the ones he shot.

"Okay, time to switch," Storm said, and put away Excelsior. He brought out Typhoon in Gatling gun form, and was ready to fire, when it jammed. The Grimm charged, and Storm, weaponless, thought he wouldn't make it out of here alive.

Then, a flurry of blades slashed through the Beowolves. It didn't look like they had been throw, but launched! There were two Grimm left after the attack. One retreated, while another found the person responsible for the killing.

The person that came to his rescue was the white haired Faunus Storm had helped earlier, Feather, and she had come to his rescue. Suddenly, the blades that had killed the others flew towards the Faunus' mechanical wings, and attached to them, forming feathers. Then, the wings shifted into dual swords, and she eviscerated the Grimm.  
She turned to Storm, her weapons shifting back into their original form. "I didn't expect you to be my partner," Storm said. "But, I guess we're even now."

* * *

Azura fumbled with the Dust shell as she tried to load it into the revolver. She was being chased by a crab-Grimm, and her weapon had been unloaded into the Grimm's companions. She was about to load the shell into her gun when the Grimm grabbed her from behind, and threw her into a tree. Underneath her duster was armor that stopped her from getting seriously injured, but didn't stop her from losing her grip on the shell. It went flying through the air, towards where Azura was getting up. Her revolver was open so that she could load it, and she had an idea. She held her revolver out, and the shell landed perfectly into the chamber. She flicked her wrist, and the revolver closed, giving her the go ahead to pull the trigger. The Grimm went down after that, and Azura collapsed. "Ah, I need to put more ammo capacity into this thing," Azura said to herself, loading the revolver again.

Suddenly, a Beowolf smashed through the trees, and saw Azura. She was about to pull her gun on it when somebody came whizzing out of the air. Flames accompanied this person as he smashed his red hammer into the Grimm's head. He stood up, and turned to Azura. He had blazing red hair, and reddish brown clothes. "Hey, I'm Rusti," the person dressed in reddish brown said.

"Azura."

"Good to meet you. I guess we're partners."

* * *

**So, who's going to end up on a team together? Speculate if you want, but it won't be until next week that you'll find out the names behind SAFR. Also, team CCRE hasn't shown up yet. I'll get to them soon enough.**


	5. Chapter 4: Formation

**Hello, here's chapter 4.**

* * *

Storm and Feather arrived at a huge shipwreck at about midday, several hours since they had been shot at the island. It looked old, with the wood rotting away, and cobwebs all around the galleon. Storm pulled out Excelsior in rifle form, and Feather transformed her wings into swords again. Neither of them wanted to be caught unawares.

As they entered the shipwreck through a giant hole in the side of the hull, Storm found it best to start up a conversation with Feather. "So, uh… Why do you want to become a Huntress?"

Feather looked at him for a moment, maybe to judge his sincerity, and then answered. "I wanted to set an example for other Faunas; that Faunas are just as capable as humans, like in the Free Man." Feather was a little braver than Storm remembers her being.

"Wait; doesn't he get killed at the end?"

"Spoiler!"

An eerie creek in the ship snapped them out of the conversation, and back to the here and now. A red blur swung from the ceiling, and made a startling sound.

"Whoopwhoopwhoopwhoopwhoop!" The shot back several paces, and Storm raised his rifle, ready to deal with any Grimm that showed its face.

Then, he lowered it at the realization that it wasn't a Grimm, but another student. "Oh I got you good, I got you- OW!" the student said as he tumbled off rafter he was hanging off of. He had a reddish-brown jacket with accompanying pants, a red tunic, about medium skin, and blazing red hair.

"Rusti, stop acting childish," a teen with blue hair behind Rusti said.

"Azura!" Feather said to the blue haired teen.

"You know her?" Storm asked.

"We met on the airship." That explained it. "Who are you?"

"I'm Storm, Feather's partner."

"Okay, now that we've gotten introductions out of the way, get a relic."

"Right." Then he felt the need to ask something. "Where are the relics?"

"On the poop deck. They're pretty interesting, too."

"Thank you."

Storm and Feather found their way onto the poop deck of the ship, located at the back of the wreck. On a table were several coins, some were made from different materials than the others, and others had different inscriptions. "Which one do you think we should get?" Storm said.

While most had a matching twin, there were a few that didn't. Storm had no idea if Rain, who he wanted to be on the same team as, had been through here, and gotten one of the other coins. And since he had heard of teams being groups of four, though simple deduction he figured out that two pairs that had similar relics might be put into the same team. Of course, this was all speculation, and was not founded on fact, so he decided to let Feather choose.

It took a long time, but Feather picked up on of the coins. It was a small, silver coin, that had little inscription on it. While it probably was worth less than a lot of coins, it definitely wasn't worth the least. She handed the relic to Storm, and he put it in his pants' pocket. "Well, that was easy," Storm said.

* * *

As the four of them (Storm, Feather, Azura, and Rusti) reached the eastern shore of the island, they saw two students, one that seemed to be Rain, and another who was shooting fireballs, battling a Poseidon. A Poseidon was a giant sea serpent Grimm, with long fangs, and tough, white and black scales.

Azura pulled out Standoff, and fired at the Poseidon. The Grimm took notice of this, a turned to the newcomers. Azura fired even more shots, and Storm pulled out Typhoon in its Gatling gun form, and started shooting at the Poseidon as well. This only made it angrier.

The Poseidon shot forward, smashing into the ground. While they got out of the way in time, they still couldn't bring it down easy. Rusti swung his hammer, Firebrand, at the Poseidon, flames accompanying it. It harmlessly deflected off the Grimm's hide, much to Rusti's displeasure. His hammer transformed, and it was just a flamethrower now. Fire engulfed the serpent's head, but it wasn't weakening it at all.

"I have a plan," Storm said.

"Let's hear it," Azura said.

"Feather, fly up and shot your, hm, feathers at it. Then pull them back in. Then Azura, Rusti, and I will shoot at the pierced areas. Okay?"

Both Azura and Feather nodded.

"Great. I'll go tell Rusti." Storm's plan was put into motion, and it wasn't long before the Poseidon was dead. Its giant corpse disintegrated as an airship came in to retrieve them.

"Nice work, Storm. I wouldn't have thought up of that plan," Azura said.

"Well, I just happen to have seen all of you in action. Anyone could have thought up of that plan."

"Modesty is a strong suit that you shouldn't keep long, Storm."

"Well, let's just get back to the academy." And they boarded the airship back to Haven.

* * *

"Sun Wukong, Scarlet David, Sage Ayana, and Neptune Vasilias," Headmaster Forester said, and students with the according names came onto the stage. "The four of you recovered the crown pieces. Henceforth, you will be known as team SSSN, led by Sun Wukong." That was not remotely how you spelled sun, but Storm decided not to argue.

Though, there was one question he had. "Is that a man or a woman?" He referred to Scarlet David. Rain shrugged in response.

It was the ceremony to announce the teams for this year, being held in the audience hall. So far there had been three teams announced, and none of them had Rain or Storm in their ranks. Then, the Headmaster announced another team. "Crystal Taryn, Cirocco Zaphyr, Rain Sapphire, and Ember Fall," Headmaster Forester said, and the according students went on stage, including Rain. Rain was in a different team than Storm was, and neither of them liked that idea very much. "The four of you recovered the half-crown pieces, and thus, you will be known as team CCRE, led by Crystal Taryn." Again, that was not how you spell anything, especially core.

After CCRE, Storm was called on stage. "Storm Sapphire, Azura Eastwood, Feather Elric, and Rusti Tolkien," Headmaster Forester said, as the four of them walked onto the stage. "The four of you recovered the silver coins, which I cannot remember the name of. Anyway, henceforth, you will be known as team SAFR, led by Storm Sapphire." Storm was so surprised by the news that he didn't even notice that that is not how you spell sapphire either, and he was an expert. He could hardly believe that he had been chosen to lead. While he was a bit of a strategist, he couldn't see himself leading.

"Congrats, Storm," Azura said.

"I am glad," Feather added.

"I think I should have led, you know, because I'm so awesome," Rusti said.

* * *

**So, you finally know the teams. And in case you're wondering why I would split up the twin characters, well, let's just say that I write sometimes what I know, and I'll leave it at that.**

**Also, I did not guess the last names of Sage and Scarlet months before it was released. This chapter was replaced by an edited version on January 1st, 2016, a year after this was originally written. Why did I edit this? Because I didn't like having it like this. Why don't I edit out the Scarlet possibly being a woman jokes from this and chapter 9? Because that would change the scenes significantly. Besides, if I went through and removed every mistake I made on this, then this would be a much shorter story.**


	6. Chapter 5: First Day

**It's time for teen drama! Actually, it's more like teen comedy. On a Thursday!**

* * *

The next morning, slowly they each awoke. Feather was first, and had to wait an hour until breakfast was served in the cafeteria, so she had too much time to prepare, and yet, not enough to read some of the more challenging books. She had taken a shower, gotten her school uniform on, and still no one else was awake. She spent a good twenty minutes looking out at the scene outside her window before anyone else woke up.

Storm raised his head from his pillow, and looked a Feather. "You're up early," Storm said.

Feather turned her head to face him. "I tend to wake up early," Feather replied.

"Why?" Storm said as he sat up in his pajamas.

"It is a sensitive subject, but I will tell you that it is simply my family's habit." She really didn't want to share the full reason.

"Okay, well. Good morning." Storm headed to the dresser, and then the bathroom to get his uniform on.

* * *

They were all awake, and were going to breakfast by eight. On their way, Azura started up a conversation with Feather. "I don't feel comfortable in this skirt." Azura referred to the skirt of her uniform.

"As do I, Azura," Feather replied. "I feel it is too revealing."

"I don't see why you're complaining; you two look great," Rusti said. Storm gave him a little whack. "Hey!"

"Can you not be a pervert?" Storm said.

"Yeah, can you?" Azura repeated.

"Hey, I'm just being honest. Can I help it if I'm observant?" Rusti said.

"I hope you can, Rusti, as the smell from the cafeteria is awful," Feather said.

"Nope, that's the science class. He may have added a little too much vinegar to that baking soda," Rusti said. The last part Azura thought may have been a joke.

They entered the cafeteria, and found that there was a variety of choices for breakfast, including pancakes. Azura thought she saw Storm squirm a little bit at the sight of them. "Hey, what's wrong, fearless leader?" Azura asked.

"I got really sick one night, and I threw up my dinner, which was actually breakfast items, including pancakes and bacon," Storm explained. "I got over the whole bacon thing, but I still get nauseous at the smell of pancakes."

"Well, they have other stuff, like cereal in those little one serving boxes, and milk in little cartons," Rusti interjected.

"Yeah, I guess that sounds good," Storm said.

Once they got their breakfast, they found team CCRE siting at one of the tables. "Hey, you can sit over here, SAFR," Crystal, their green haired team leader, said.

"Okay." Storm brought his own team to sit across CCRE at their table.

"So, I should probably introduce the team," Crystal said. "I'm Crystal. The guy with blond hair is Cirocco. The gloomy guy in the hat is Rain, who I think you might already know, Storm. And over there, the gal over there is Ember." They were each in school uniforms, and each held up to Crystal's description.

"Nice to meet you, Crystal," Storm said, shaking his fellow team leader's hand.

"Nice to meet you, too," Crystal replied.

Ember seemed to be staring at something else. "So, Ember, great name by the way," Rusti said.

"Hm, What?" Ember said, turning her head away from what she was looking at.

"What were you looking at?" Crystal asked.

"Oh, nothing. Just looking for… someone."

"Are you looking for me, your true love?" Rusti said in a more suave voice than normal.

"Just so you know, I have a flame whip in my locker, so you better not mess with me," Ember said.

"Okay, not going to get anywhere with her." Rusti moved away from ember nervously.

"I think Ember might have a thing for Rain," Crystal whispered to Storm.

"Well, she doesn't seem like Rain's type, though," Storm replied.

"So, you're a Faunus," Cirocco said to Feather. Cirocco spoke in an accent that Storm couldn't quite place.

"Yes," Feather replied, meekly.

"You know a Faunus killed my dad," Cirocco said.

"Look, you shouldn't judge an entire race by one…" Storm started saying until Cirocco interrupted.

"No, he was White Fang. I don't blame Faunas for my dad's death. I blame the racist people who made the White Fang do what they do." Then Cirocco looked at Feather with a more intent look. "You aren't White Fang, are you?"

"No," Feather said.

"Good, because I would hate to fight before I'm done with breakfast."

Crystal changed the subject. "You look a lot like Rain, Storm. Are you two twins?"

"Yeah, we are," Storm said.

"Of course, but I just wanted to be sure," Crystal said. "That's works into my semblance, too."

"Your semblance?"

"Yeah, I can actually project my consciousness while leaving my body in one place," Crystal explained. "Usually it's only for a split second in real time, but I'm it still makes me a really good scout."

"Huh. My semblance is figuring out how things work faster than should be humanly possible," Storm said. "Because of it, I have just a bunch of weapons."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Back at Sanctum, everyone would call me 'Tony' for some reason. Never quite figured out why."

Crystal laughed at what was actually not a joke. He was really confused by the nickname.

During their conversations, they finished their breakfasts. When the bell rung, they all left, knowing each other a lot more than when they sat down.

* * *

**I like chapters like this. They allow for comedy and character development instead of poorly described action.**

**Also, I wonder who your favorite character is so far. Go ahead a post it in a review below what it is, and I'll take a look at it. Also, I would like a little more publicity, so if you have any tips for that I'd be grateful.**


	7. Chapter 6: Dueling

**More fluff. But, you need to know the characters before the next chapter.**

* * *

After the morning classes, Storm and his teammates met up with Crystal's team for lunch. It was chicken sandwiches, a personal favorite of Storm's.

"So, how are classes going for everybody?" Crystal asked. Rain, Azura, and Cirocco collectively groaned in response.

"Come on, it can't be that bad; you're in history class," Storm said. "I wish I had history class that early."

"Listen to yourself. History is boring," Azura said. "It's just a bunch of stuff that happened decades ago. How could anyone find history fascinating?"

"It's like a really good story, that actually happened," Crystal said.

"My sentiments exactly," Storm added.

"Whatever. I'm still not going to enjoy history class with that boring professor," Cirocco interjected.

"Speak for yourselves. I got a date," Rusti said.

"Tell me that you're kidding," Azura said.

"Nope. History chick. We're going to go 'study' at a coffee shop tonight."

"I weep for everyone involved," Feather said. They all laughed.

"I didn't know you had it in you, Feather," Crystal said.

"So, combat class is next," Ember said. "Is anyone looking forward to that?"

"Yeah. I'm going to be able to show off my manliness to the entire school," Rusti said.

"Please don't," Rain said.

"I think it may be enjoyable," Feather said.

"Why?" Crystal asked.

"For it will allow me to show off my equality to humans."

"Sure, you can do that. What kind of fighter are you, anyway?" Cirocco asked.

"You can find out soon enough."

* * *

Feather slashed her blades as one, knocking Cirocco to the ground. He groaned while the fighting instructor called the match. "Better luck next time, I suppose," Feather said.

Cirocco grunted frustratedly, and walked out of the fighting area.

The combat instructor, a tall woman with purple hair and light green armor, made a note on her scroll. "And that makes your fifth consecutive match that you've won. Please rest and allow someone else to win."

"Okay," Feather said, returning to being the shy girl she usually was.

Combat class was going just fine if you were Feather. If you weren't Feather, you were seated in chairs overlooking the fighting area, making sure that a stray Dust round didn't hit one of the observers.

"Does anyone else want to fight a match?" the combat instructor asked.

"I think I'll give it a shot," Storm said.

"I guess it's something to do," Ember said.

As they walked into the fighting area, Feather left.

Ember's combat gear was a black combat vest with a red shirt under it, and black pants with boots.

"May the best… student win," Storm said, pausing to figure out what noun to use. Storm put his hand out for Ember to shake.

"Yes, she will," Ember replied. She pulled out her weapon, a long staff with a red Dust crystal resting on the more ornate end.

Storm pulled his hand back at refusal of the handshake. He pulled out Excelsior and Typhoon in their melee forms. Both students were ready for battle.

"Let the match begin," the instructor said.

Ember sent a fireball at Storm, which he blocked with his shield. Storm turned his sword into its rifle form, and began firing at Ember. Ember managed to avoid the shots, and send another fireball at Storm. The fireball caught Storm off his guard, and he was fortunate to block it in time. The warm air around the fire, though, blasted him right in the face.

Storm shifted his rifle back into sword form, and charged towards Ember. Almost in response to this, Ember's staff shortened towards the end with the crystal on it, and the several other crystals came out of it, turning it into a whip like weapon, with fire Dust making up the rope part. Ember's whip slashed against Storm's shield, and knocked it out of his hand. It was then that Storm had an idea. When she whipped her weapon back at Storm again, Storm cut the chain of Dust with his sword, severing the over half the dust crystals from the rest of the whip.

Ember turned her whip back into a staff, but it wasn't going to be enough to fight Storm. He slashed his sword at Ember, and she just barely blocked with her staff. She probably wasn't used to physical fighting, so this fight would be easy. That is, unless Ember didn't blast Storm at point-black range with a burst of fire. Storm rushed towards his shield, when Ember turned her staff back into a whip, and somehow reattached it to the severed crystals on the floor. Storm was stopped in his pursuit of his shield by Ember's whip wrapping around his ankle, and pulling him backwards.

Storm was going to cut the whip off his ankle, when the combat instructor called the match. "Victory for Ember Fall," the instructor said. "I have come to expect that from your family, though.

Finding victory, Ember unwrapped her whip from around Storm's ankle, and turned her weapon back into a staff. Neither of them said anything to the other, but Storm was not happy about losing. Then a computerized bell rang. "That's the end of class, students," the combat instructor said. "I expect you to remember the lesson today for as long as you live: there is a difference between confidence and overconfidence. It is your job to recognize this difference."

The students wandered out of combat class, and started walking to their next classes. Storm and Ember were on the same course to their next class, and Storm found it a good time to ask Ember something.

"What did the instructor mean when she said that she expected you to win because of your family?" Storm asked Ember, realizing that may have been a bit long.

"Family's always been good fighters. Don't want to talk to you about it," Ember replied.

That's when Storm drew parallels between Feather and Ember, but they were probably just a coincidence.

* * *

**Hooray, another chapter's over. Any questions?**


	8. Chapter 7: Betrayal

**So, time to see what all the excitement is about. Now, before we begin I want to say that I don't want to trivialize anything that real people have gone through. I don't want people to think I'm heartless. No, I'm only slightly heartless. But in any case, I want people to know that what follows is meant for dramatic effect, not a joke or trivialization.**

* * *

It had been two months since the start of the school year, when it happened. They were going to lunch when a fight broke out between some of the students. Storm and his team ran to the center to see who was fighting, when Storm felt his heart sink. Rain, his own brother, along with Ember were fighting Crystal and Cirocco. While Crystal and Cirocco did not have their weapons, Ember had her whip and Rain had Bolt Breaker.

Storm had always admired Bolt Break because of its incredible design. It was a shotgun that extended into a sniper rifle and then a staff that shot electricity. No matter what Storm designed, short of Titan maybe, he could not beat Rain with Bolt Breaker. He would need Titan to stop this fight, if anything.

Storm took out his scroll, and entered in the command for his mobile locker to come to his location. While the mobile lockers were designed in Atlas, and then distributed to various Academies throughout the kingdoms, they had them in Haven, and Storm was going to use his.

Storm's mobile locker crashed through the skylight of the cafeteria, and smashed into the tiled floor. He ran to his locker, and opened it, revealing it to be full of weapons. Of all of them, he chose Titan. Titan was no ordinary weapon; it was a full suit of powered armor, with weapon systems that were too bulky to be turned into handheld weapons. The armor plating on it was though enough to withstand a tank blast, but only one, and had a blue and white paint job that an old Sanctum friend prided herself on. While he had only finished work on it since he came to Haven, and hadn't tested it yet, he was confident that he would be able to use it to stop the fight.

Storm put Titan on, and charged into battle. He leapt in between the two sides, trying to discourage continuation of the fight. "What is going on?" Storm's voice came out of a poorly set speaker located on the face of his helmet.

"Stay out of this!" Ember said.

"But you need to stop fighting!" Storm said.

"Stay out of this, Storm," Rain said.

Rain's response was the last straw. "I don't care what's going on anymore; I just want you to put down your weapons, and maybe then you won't get expelled," Storm said.

"Sorry, brother." Rain drew out Bolt Breaker, and shot at his own brother. The shell from Bolt Breaker ricocheted off Storm's armor, and was never seen again.

Ember slashed her whip at Storm. Storm tried blocking with his arms, but it didn't quite work the way he wanted it to. It wrapped around his arms, and Ember tried pulling it loose. But then he realized that he could take advantage of this. He grabbed onto the whip, and pulled it up into the air, with Ember still holding on to the handle. Storm had Ember over his head, and then swung the whip back down to the ground.

Ember slammed into the ground, making a dent in the cafeteria floor. "Ember!" Rain shouted, and fired multiple rounds at Storm. Seeing that his shotgun was ineffective, Rain transformed it into its staff form. Electricity crackled from the staff, and Rain sent bolts of lightning at Storm. Storm could almost feel the electricity deflecting off his armor, but only just. Storm triggered something, and energy blasts came out of blasters on his forearms. The blasts struck Rain, stunning him.

When the fight was done, he deactivated Titan, retracting into a more compact, backpack-like form. He looked around, and ran over to his mobile locker, put Titan back into it, and took out his shin guards. He attached them, and just before somebody came up to talk to him, and activated the return sequence on his locker, and ran.

* * *

Feather, Azura, Rusti, Crystal, and Cirocco looked all around the school for Storm. Ever since the brawl in the cafeteria, Storm hadn't been seen anywhere, so naturally, they were looking for him.

While most of the others were not having as much luck with finding Storm, Feather remembered that Storm could go places that the others couldn't. She remembered that Storm had rockets installed into the back of his shin guards so that he could fly. So, Feather was searching some of the more remote places of the Academy.

She found Storm on the top of the mountain that Haven Academy was carved out of. He was looking contemplative, but at the same time somewhat sad. "Are you okay?" Feather asked.

Storm sighed, and then replied, "No, but I don't think I will be unless I talk with someone other than myself."

Feather sat beside Storm overlooking the city behind the mountain. "Why do you not go into the city?" Feather questioned.

"Ah, not enough fuel in jets; I would get maybe halfway there, and then run out of fuel."

The two of them were silent for a while.

"So, how are you holding up?" Feather asked.

"My own brother shot at me," Storm said, tearing up. "It wasn't in practice; it wasn't a warning shot that got too close; he shot at me like I was an enemy. Do you know what it's like to be attacked by someone you trusted?"

"A little too well." Feather gained a look from Storm as if he wanted an explanation. "Off topic memory. You were saying."

"I don't even know why he did it, though." Storm's emotions renewed.

"Perhaps it was because of a bad influence, such as Ember," Feather suggested.

"Now that sounds like Rain; he is really weak willed when it comes to what to think," Storm said. "But that doesn't sound like Ember either; she's just some kind of quiet… Goth? I don't know, it's just out of nowhere for both of them."

"Perhaps, but it is unhealthy to dwell on the event too long," Feather replied. "We should return to the school."

"Okay," Storm said.

Feather got up first, and helped Storm up from where he was sitting. "Thank you… for everything," Storm said.

"You're welcome," Feather replied. And they walked back down the mountain to Haven.

* * *

Headmaster Lionel Forester opened the door to the conference room, and all the teachers were there. He sat down in his chair at the end of the table, and saw a student sitting at the other end with pale skin and black hair. It wasn't a very long table, so a conversation could be held from any part of the table to another. "So, you are Ember Fall, the girl who caused so much trouble earlier today," Lionel said.

"Yes, but I did it because I needed to talk with you all," Ember said.

"About what?" Lionel asked.

"Are you familiar with Cinder Fall?" Ember asked.

"Yes, a relative of yours, I believe," Lionel said.

"Well, she's gone to Vale for the tournament, but she's not spectating or participating; she's going to crash the tournament!" Ember said.

"Troubling, but not completely unknown," Lionel said. "But we still can't let you run around the school causing panic, so let's make a deal. You and your friend, Rain, will go to Vale early along with a friend of the school, Locaster, and you will find Cinder and whatever followers she may have, and end them. I already have an agent in Vale who can help you in your investigation."

"But what about my team?" Ember asked.

"Well, we can't send them with you; it would be too suspicious." Lionel pondered the predicament for a bit. "I know; we will assign them to work with another team until further notice. Is that alright?"

"I guess," Ember replied.

"Good. Now, does anyone have any more business to take of? No? Good. I'm going to go back to managing the biggest school in the entire kingdom." Lionel got up from his chair. "I know you guys elected me to this because you thought it would be funny; to see me lose my mind. But guess what! I haven't broken anybody's legs yet, so there!" And Lionel stormed off. He could just hear the laughter after he left. And then he went back in, joined them in the laugh, and they continued the meeting.

* * *

**Okay, now that that is over, please don't write hate reviews because of the tool for dramatic effect. Also, if you want to know want Crystal and Cirocco's reactions were to this, well... I didn't write them. I can just tell you.  
****Crystal was shaken, but remained mostly unaffected. As you will learn, not much manages to slow her down or encumber her. She's a lot like me: gets over tragedy fast. Or at least, appears to.  
And It didn't permanently affect Cirocco. In his own words, he's insensitive. In fact, it's his defining characteristic. He's also honest. He believes these things are the reason he doesn't have a girlfriend. Oh, if he only knew.**

**Anyway, see you next time.**


	9. Chapter 8: Voyage to Vale

**Okay, after that last chapter, this is kind of a let down, but at least we get to see (Superman pose) _character _****_development!_**

* * *

It was a week after Rain and Ember attacked their teammates, and they hadn't been seen since. But, life moved on, and Team SAFR needed to get to Vale for the Vytal Festival. Crystal and Cirocco were waiting at the docks for Storm and his team.

When Crystal saw SAFR, she walked over to them to give them the good/bad news, depending on who you were. "Hey, Storm."

"Hello," Storm replied.

"Since your probably not wondering why we're here, I'm just going to say it: we're supposed to go with you to Vale, and on your first mission." Storm seemed to be taking it surprisingly well, but she still thought that she needed to show Storm the authorization. "Here's the order from Headmaster Forester." Crystal pulled out her scroll, and transferred a file to Storm's. Storm's scroll beeped, causing him to open it. He saw the file, and closed his scroll.

"Okay, let's go then," Storm said.

* * *

Once they were aboard a transport ship headed to Vale, Crystal found Feather. "Hey, do you want to practice up on deck?" Crystal asked.

"Okay," Feather replied.

On the top deck, there was a large enough open area to spar. "Alright, when you're ready, Feather," Crystal said, drawing her weapons. She had two long scimitars, both looking like they were made out of some sort of, well, crystal substance. It wasn't Dust, in fact, Feather had no idea what they were made out of, but it may not have mattered, so Feather stopped thinking about it.

Feather's wings extended, and she flew up, a calculated risk at sea. Feather then shot her blades at Crystal, but she did something surprising. She shattered her weapons against the deck of the ship, and they reformed into a shield! The blades were blocked by Crystal's defense, much to Feather's surprise. She flew back down, pulling the feather-like blades back to her wings. She shifted her wings into swords, and slashed at Crystal. Her shield didn't withstand the swords, but it reformed into a double bladed sword.

Crystal blocked each attack from Feather, and almost managed to hit her once or twice. Suddenly, Crystal knocked one of Feather's swords out of her hand, and then the other. She then slashed at Feather's midsection when her blade shattered again. "Good match," Crystal said as her weapon reformed into the dual scimitars she started out with.

"How can your weapons do that?" Feather asked. She had never seen Crystal's weapons in action.

"I have no idea," Crystal said. That was a little underwhelming for Feather. "These weapons were an heirloom, passed down from generation to generation, father to son until… me; only child of the Taryn estate." Crystal seemed mournful somehow.

"I am sorry," Feather replied.

"Don't worry; I got over it a while ago. Now I'm normal-ish." Crystal was good at assuring Feather. "Of course, we're trying to become warriors who go around and fight the biggest, meanest, toughest creatures we possibly can; if that's normal, I'm done." They both had a laugh, and Crystal went back to her quarters.

* * *

Storm was designing a weapon, as he usually did when he had nothing better to do, when he caught himself thinking about Rain. He should have gotten over it already, but some stuff just managed to latch onto Storm longer than it should. He just couldn't fathom why he would do such a thing. He couldn't even fathom why Ember would do it. All he knew was that they attacked their teammates with no given reason.

Storm looked down at the desk with a piece of paper on it in front of him. He always started with a rough sketch of what he wanted first, and then figured out the mechanics of it. He was designing a bow that turned into… something. He didn't know what it would turn into, but he just thought that there weren't enough bows around, so he would try and build one.

If he worked the bow into a gauntlet, then it would… No, no, no, that wouldn't work. It wouldn't be stable enough for a sword, too thinly built for an axe. What would the bow turn into? Usually this would be the time that he turned to Rain and asked his opinion on it, but that seldom helped anyway. Then it was clear to Storm.

He should ask one of his teammates what he should do. But they were all asleep. Who could he turn to for help? Whenever he had a puzzle like this, it interfered with his sleep, and so he couldn't sleep on it like normal people do. Too bad he wasn't like those two twins he had heard about in Vale; they had a special semblance that allowed each other to read to other's thought. Storm thought that that would be really uncomfortable for him to be linked with Rain and Rain to be linked with him. Rain was always throwing up inhospitable walls to what Storm could only guess was a creepy center, and Storm just didn't like the idea of his mind being read at all.

It didn't matter what Storm came up with, though; he would always have the same problems over and over again. He would always have the problem of not understanding why Rain and Ember did what they did, and he wouldn't know what the bow should turn into… Then he had a stroke of genius. It would turn into armblades.

Having his weapon design problem solved, for now, Storm went to his bed, and tried getting to sleep.

* * *

**Okay, now who doesn't want to see Crystal in a visual format? Anyway, I know this doesn't match the drama of the last one, but I try not to write stuff like that. Besides, Storm still hasn't gotten over his brother's actions, so that's something. Anyway, see you next chapter for one of my favorites!**


	10. Chapter 9: Welcome Wagon

**Okay, now it's time for my favorite chapter in the entirety of Part 1!**

* * *

Team SAFR, Crystal and Cirocco were walking on the docs, and into the city of Vale. It was completely different from Mistral, with very different looking buildings. That's when a fellow student, Sun Wukong, Storm thought his name was, rushed past the team and a half. Behind them, a man shouted, "You no good stowaway!"

"Wait, did anyone know he was a on the ship?" Rusti asked.

"Sure, I helped him stow away," Crystal said.

"What?"

"Yeah, it was either that or Neptune would keep bugging me. Really, he has no idea how to talk to ladies," Crystal said.

"And you didn't know anything about it?" Rusti asked Cirocco.

"Hey, I don't associate with team SSSN; Scarlet really freaks me out," Cirocco replied.

"Finally, someone else who think she's creepy," Storm said.

"She? I though he was a he," Cirocco said.

"Welcome to being off topic," Rusti said.

"Don't quote that show; 'we'll break his legs' is too popular already, and we don't need another quote from that show floating around," Azura said.

"And finally, the zombie speaks," Rusti said.

"I'm warning you: if you keep quoting that show, I WILL break your legs," Azura said.

"Okay." Rusti's head seemed to sink between his shoulders.

"Anyway, what were we talking about?" Crystal asked.

"Wow, that welcoming comity is really dedicated; they're chasing Sun all the way..." Storm said. "Up. Now the white one ran into somebody." Storm began cracking up.

"Oh, now I know what you're talking about; I thought it was a… nah," Rusti said.

"And now they're just… talking," Storm said. "Wow, those are some wild gestures. I don't think that they're the welcoming comity."

"I hope they aren't; that's Weiss Schnee," Crystal said.

"How can you…" Rusti started.

"Consciousness projection for a semblance; it's really fun sometimes, but not when we're on a boat forever," Crystal said. While it was an exaggeration, it got the point across. "That reminds me, have you tried turning the bow into…"

"Armblades, yes, and it works. All I need now is to build it," Storm said.

"Anyway, let's get off this doc; my jacket's starting to smell like fish," Azura said. They all agreed, and walked into the city of Vale.

One from the group that Storm had mistaken for a welcoming comity had broken off, and went to greet the teams from Mistral. The one who was going to greet them was a girl dressed in a red and black dress with a hood, and looked a little young to be from Beacon. "Hello, I'm Ruby, and welcome to Vale," the girl said.

"Hello, Ruby, I'm Crystal," Crystal said. "And my comrades are Cirocco; Storm; Azura; Feather; and Rusti."

"Um, where's the rest of your team? Usually there are four members in a team, not three or six or…" Ruby said.

"Have you heard of the Haven shooting?" Azura said.

"Oh, you're team CCRE?" Ruby said.

"Well, what's left of it, yeah," Crystal said.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. We're all over it, right? Crystal seemed to want a response, but Storm didn't want to give one.

"It was scary; let's not talk about it," Rusti said. Rusti seemed to want to change the topic "So, are you going to an academy around here, Ruby?"

"Yep, I'm going to Beacon," Ruby said.

"Ha," Cirocco said.

"No, I'm really going to Beacon. My team's back there." Ruby pointed her thumb to the team behind her.

"Okay, um, they seem to be fighting over something," Crystal said. "Could I speak with the team leader? I might be able to help her break this up."

"You're talking to her," Ruby said.

"You're the team leader?" Cirocco said, not believing his ears.

"Yep, Ruby Rose; leader of team RWBY," Ruby said.

"I don't believe this." Cirocco started to crack up.

"You're being insensitive, Cirocco," Crystal said.

"Don't you know me? I'm always insensitive; which is why I don't have a girlfriend," Cirocco said.

"If we are going to continue having unnecessary delays, I will simply go straight to Beacon," Feather said, extending her mechanical wings.

"Oh! Do those wings fly?" Ruby said.

"Yes, they can," Feather said.

"What else can they do?" Ruby seemed extremely enthused about this.

"They turn into swords and the feathers shoot out like a Nevermore's," Feather said.

"Oh, cool."

"What is your weapon?" Feather asked. Suddenly, Ruby pulled out her weapon as it was transforming. When it finally stopped, it was in the form of a giant scythe!

"That's something I've never thought of," Storm said.

"What?" Ruby said.

"A scythe and what I assume is a sniper rifle?" Storm admired Ruby's weapon. "I'm a crazy weapons designer, don't mind me."

"A weapons designer?" Ruby said.

"Yeah, I just keep thinking up of crazy ideas for weapons, and sometimes building them." Storm hoped that was enough explanation. "You're scythe really reminds me of Bolt Breaker, my brother's weapon. I could only beat it with Titan; a very special weapon I built for taking on really dangerous opponents."

"What's Titan?" Ruby asked.

"Now that's a question that will only be answered if we duel in the tournament."

After a pause, Ruby spoke again. "How about you meet my team?"

"I would rather not," Feather said.

"How come?" Ruby asked.

"That is Weiss Schnee, is it not?" Feather said.

"Yeah, that's Weiss."

"Then I would rather not meet her. I am sorry." Feather proceeded soared up into the sky.

"What was that about?" Ruby asked.

"Feather's a Faunus; the Schnee family hasn't exactly been nice to Faunus. You get the idea," Crystal said. "You seem nice, though."

"Thanks," Ruby replied.

"So, who else is on your team?" Crystal asked.

Ruby turned around, and began pointing to her teammates. "You know Weiss. That's Blake, the one who's arguing with Weiss. And Yang, my sister."

Cirocco looked at Yang, and then looked back at Ruby. "You look nothing like your sister," Cirocco said.

"I know. It's complicated."

"Are you adopted?" Cirocco asked.

"No and neither is Yang."

"Okay, I'm not going to ask any more questions, because the answers just… confuse me even more." Cirocco then began wandering off.

"Where is he going?" Storm asked.

"I don't know. I'm his partner and I don't know," Crystal said.

"My guess is Beacon," Rusti said. "Hey, shouldn't we go to Beacon, too?"

"Good point, let's go," Storm said.

* * *

**Okay, if you did not like that chapter, I don't see how. Anyway, see you on Thursday!**


	11. Chapter 10: Reunions

**Now for more RWBY cameos! This is kind of a humor chapter, but stuff does get done.**

* * *

Time passed slowly for team SAFR. Until two weeks after they arrived, and Rusti and Azura found one of their "friends" from Vale named Nora.

"So, Rusti, how has it been at Haven?" Nora asked. They were meeting at a coffee shop in the city to catch up. Nora had something with way too much sugar in it; Rusti chose something that Azura judged had to be pure caffeine; and Azura just had something so that she wouldn't get distracted from the conversation. It was very hard to follow Nora or Rusti, so when they had a conversation, one had to follow very closely to even understand half of it.

"It's been great," Rusti said. "I knew there was going to have to be some getting used to, but I feel like that's done now. So how's Ren?"

"He's silent as always. Anyway, I seen you've met Azura," Nora said. "You know how we know each other. You know, you probably don't. Our parents used to visit each other all the time, so of course we would get to know each other."

"I didn't know that." Rusti paused only three seconds. "Hey, do you think we should tell Azura how we know each other, Nora?"

"Sure we should," Nora replied. "You see, it was in elementary school, and Rusti came up to me and then told me that I had orange hair. Then I kicked him in the stomach, and threw him into a trash can." Azura reeled back.

"You didn't just stuff him in there, you threw him?" Azura said.

"Yep," Rusti said. "Took me until middle school to get over my fear of her."

"So, what team are you on?" Azura asked after a small pause.

"Team JNPR," Nora said, "along with Ren, our leader, Jaune, and Pyrrah."

"Wait, Pyrrah Nikos?" Azura said.

"Yep," Nora replied.

"The same one who won the Sanctum Regional Championship four times in a row?"

"Yep."

"Oh my gosh." Azura could not believe what she was hearing. "Wow, I didn't realize…"

"Yeah, she's a good teammate," Nora said.

"By the way, I completed your challenge," Azura said.

"You found someone who doesn't like pancakes?" Nora said, standing up suddenly, surprised.

"Yep, Storm, team leader, he doesn't like pancakes," Azura said.

"Where is he?"

"At the guest dorms I guess," Azura said.

"Well he is about to learn how great pancakes are!" Nora began to storm off.

"Wait, it's because of childhood trauma!" Nora stopped in her tracks.

"What do you mean?"

"He threw up pancakes when he was sick."

"Okay, I guess I can see that." Nora settled down, and resumed drinking her coffee.

* * *

Cirocco leapt out of the way of his opponent's gunfire. As good a fighter as he was, he wasn't bulletproof. He was fighting some guy in a green kimono with machine pistols that looked like they had blades sticking out the barrels of the guns. He may have been beaten by Feather, but Cirocco wasn't about to let himself be beaten by this guy.

Once he was in position, Cirocco leapt forward, and activated his gauntlets. Blades deployed from the forearms, and he slashed them towards his opponent. His opponent stopped them with an aura shield, and kicked at Cirocco's legs. Cirocco repositioned his legs, and extended a blade from his left gauntlet's wrist, and stabbed it at his opponent's face. He parried with his right weapon, and slashed at Cirocco from below. Then, Cirocco leapt backward, pulling his opponent with him. They both stopped on the wall, leapt back onto the floor, and continued their struggle.

It was at least another ten minutes of pure impulse and skill until they finally finished. Cirocco, thoroughly exhausted from the fight, pulled out a maneuver that he hoped he didn't have to until the tournament. He leapt at the wall, and then towards the opposite one, and again, catching his opponent off guard. His opponent was knocked to the ground, and Cirocco finally stopped bouncing.

"Congratulations, mister Zaphyr, you have just become the first to win a match against Lie Ren," the combat instructor, one Glynda Goodwitch, said, marking something on her scroll.

"Good match," Lie Ren said, putting his hand forward.

"Yeah, you really had me there for a second… actually you had me there for a lot of seconds." They shook hands, and Cirocco left.

That match had allowed him into the tournament, and he was as happy as he ever got. He met up with Crystal outside the dueling arena.

"So, you won, I take it from the fact that you aren't trying to take it out on the pavement," Crystal said.

"Yep," Cirocco said.

"That's great."

"Yeah, I know."

"Why do I get the feeling that you're still not happy?"

"Because I'm not."

"Care to explain?"

"Nope."

While he probably could have been a little more explanative, he didn't feel like it. Cirocco had just found out that there was going to be a dance that Sunday, and he didn't like dancing.

He found it appalling how he was probably expected to go to some event that he wouldn't enjoy just because everyone else was. There would be crowds of dancing teens, some talking, and while he was trying to hold a decent conversation with someone. There was just no way to hear anybody over the constant chatter.

Of course, if he didn't attend, then everyone would think he was doing something nefarious. He hated how people would only think and not tell other people of how they really feel about other people. He thought that everyone should be as brutally honest as himself.

Then, Azura walked up to him. "So, there's this dance going on. Do you want to go with me?" she asked.

Suddenly, he did something completely out of character; he said "Sure."

* * *

**So, this is going to be fun, the whole dance thing. Of course, the next chapter is going to prove something that needs to be known on here: _Why I don't write romance! _I'll see you then.**


	12. Chapter 11: Horror of Romance

**Updated January 30th 2016 to make it less painful. If you read the original version, then I think you'll understand.**

* * *

Storm was just working on his latest weapon when Rusti came in and started talking to him. "So, who are you going to the dance with?" Rusti asked.

"I don't know. Do you know who you're going with?" Storm replied.

"Ah, all in due time, fearless leader." Then Rusti did what Storm hated most; he kept talking. "Here are your options: one, pick someone you don't know; two, pick someone you do know, like Crystal or Feather; and three, which has never happened to me, go alone."

"While I am building a weapon, I do have several fully functional ones available," Storm said.

"Okay, just think about what I said. And remember, the dance is this Sunday." Rusti then left the guest dorm that team SAFR was assigned.

Sunday… Today was Friday, so he had about two days to figure out if he even wanted to go. He was nervous about social gatherings like this. He just was. As good a strategist he was, he had no idea what to expect from total strangers, and that worried him, because he considered almost everyone a stranger. He knew Feather a little, but only a little. He knew Crystal somewhat well, but not enough he would like. He wasn't even considering Azura; she intimidated him too much. Was it bad if a team member intimidated the team leader?

But anyway, he had other concerns. He knew very little of anything relating to romance. He'd never kissed a girl, let alone dated one. He had known girls, but never asked one out. It made him feel nervous.

He considered who he'd rather go out with. He tried judging them not by their outward appearance—as he didn't think that was a very good way to choose this sort of thing—but by their personalities.

From what he knew of Feather, she was quiet and intellectual. She was shy, and would rather not talk to anyone. He didn't even know if she'd go out with him.  
Crystal however was very open. A daughter of the legendary Taryn Estate, she had exceptional manners. But manners weren't everything. She was opinionated, talky, and could be loud at times—sounded too familiar. She was a little too talky for him.

Then again, Feather was too nervous at times. She didn't seem like the type to even go to anywhere with anyone if she could help it, let alone a dance.

Of course, he wasn't the type to go to a dance either. He almost didn't want to go, but then he thought of something. Would going to the dance with either Feather or Crystal make him want to go? Then the thought occurred to him that it would; going to the dance with Feather would make him want to go.

He got up off his chair and left to look Feather.

Storm found her in the library. She was about an arm's length from the bookcase she was looking at, and searching through for some book or another. He wondered why she was that far from the books, but that was a question for another time. As she turned her gaze towards him, he asked Feather: "Will you go to the dance with me?"

She looked shocked. Her eyes were wide, and she took a step back. "Um… no," she said in a meek voice. He was a little confused. "Let me explain. I do not want to go with anyone… I just do not…"

"I understand," Storm said. "You don't want to go."

"No, I want to go, just not with anyone. I will go to impress, but not with a date." He didn't understand it one bit, but if those were her wishes, then he would honor them.

"Okay," Storm said. He wondered if Crystal had a date yet.

* * *

It was the night of the dance, and everyone was turning out. Cirocco, however, was surprised by his date's choice of attire. "You can't wear a tux; I'm wearing a tux!" Cirocco said.

Azura was defiant. "Do you think you can parade me around in one of those dresses like I'm you're date?" Azura said. "Well I've got news for you: I asked you to the dance, not the other way around! If you want to wear a dress, that's fine with me as long as you stop complaining!"

They both chose to meet up outside the dance hall, and it seemed that they weren't the only ones. Storm waited in his black slacks and white buttoned up shirt for his date.

Rusti had already gone in with a girl around his arm that looked more like a fashion model than a huntress.

Then, Crystal arrived in a dress that looked as if it were made of emeralds. Storm got up, and spoke to Crystal. "Wow, now I feel underdressed."

"I like it; you look good," Crystal replied. She noticed Cirocco and Azura with their backs turned to each other. "What's going on over there?"

"They're having a disagreement over who should wear the tux."

"Well, if I know anything about either of them, they'll still be here in the morning in the exact positions they are in now."

"I hope Beacon like statues, because they just got two more," Storm joked. Crystal laughed.

But suddenly, all of them forgot everything when they saw Feather. She wore a white dress that looked like it was made of feathers, and a boa around her neck. "Nice dress," Crystal said.

"Thank you, it was a gift from my parents back in Mistral," Feather said. "I like your dress as well, Crystal."

"Thank you. Let's go in then." And all three of them, minus Cirocco and Azura, still stubbornly angry at the other, walked into the dance hall.


	13. Chapter 12: Dancing and Fighting

**I'm sorry that I posted this one late. I just completely forgot about it. Fortunately, it's still Monday in my time zone, so I still haven't missed my deadline!**

**But anyway, back to the plot! You know, if there was one to begin with.**

* * *

Throughout the night, it seemed like everyone had a lot of fun. Though there was a moment that Storm laughed himself to the floor despite all his barriers: some guy showed up in a dress. It was especially funny because of how it seemed to balance out the fact that Azura had refused to wear a dress. But by all accounts, it was turning into a great night.

Then, he saw someone. He saw someone with his face; he saw Rain. He pushed through the crowd, searching for Rain. And he found him and Ember. Rain seemed to be in a similar ensemble as Storm except for the dark blue shirt and black tie. Ember, however, was wearing a black dress and a red scarf around her neck.

"What are you guys doing here?" Storm asked.

"Oh, hey Storm," Rain said.

"'Hey, Storm'? You were arrested."

"Right, um. Yeah, Ember thought it was the best way to get their attention about something you probably shouldn't know about," Rain said. "Anyway, they let us take a break from tracking down the threat Ember warned them about, and come to the dance."

"Huh."

Rain then changed the subject. "So, who else is here?"

"Everyone; Crystal, Cirocco, Azura, Feather, Rusti. Everyone."

"So, who came here with who?"

"I came here with Crystal…"

"Good for you," Rain interrupted, actually genuinely happy for Storm it seemed.

"… and Feather came alone. By choice, not because nobody asked her," Storm continued. "Cirocco and Azura came together, but I think they won't leave together. Big disagreement over who should wear the tux. And Rusti came with her." Storm pointed over to Rusti and his date.

"I don't think she goes to this school, do you, Ember?" Rain said.

"Perhaps not. I'll check," Ember replied. She pulled out her scroll, and searched for Rusti's date.

"So, who is she?" Rain asked.

"Oh my gosh, she's some girl who goes to Beacon, and the daughter of two celebrities," Ember said.

"I would ask who, but I can't keep track of all these famous people," Storm admitted.

Then, the clock chimed midnight, and Rain and Ember suddenly became seemingly different people. "We need to get into position," Ember said.

"Right, let's go," Rain said very professionally.

"What's going on?" Storm asked.

"Can't talk. And don't come with us either," Rain said.

"We're twins, you can't tell me what to do."

"Well, I'm a minute older, so I can tell you what to do. Alright?" Rain replied. Then Rain and Ember left Storm bewildered.

Storm went to Crystal, thinking it would help a little to talk about this odd meeting. "Hey, Rain and Ember just left," Storm said.

"They were here?" Crystal replied.

"Yeah, they were," Storm replied. "They said something about getting into position, and that they were tracking someone down."

"Cinder," Crystal said under her breath.

"What?"

"Excuse me." And Crystal left Storm even more bewildered than before.

* * *

Ember and Rain waited over and hour until their prey showed up. When Cinder and her comrades left the dance, Rain spotted them with his sniper rifle. The trio took an odd route, going through a service tunnel under the library, so that they probably wouldn't be spotted by those who would recognize them. The service tunnel was so that they could access the power and data currents that the library required with ease, in case of issues. It was the perfect place for a fight without being seen.

They followed the trio into the service tunnel, and it was oddly spacious. If all went accord to plan, it would mean that the trio wouldn't escape this time. Rain extended his sniper rifle into its conductor form at the same time that Ember turned her staff into a whip. This would have to go quickly, or not at all. When Cinder noticed that there were footsteps behind her, she turned, and was immediately fired upon.

Rain shot a bolt of electricity at Cinder, but Mercury, Cinder's gray haired comrade, blocked the bolt with his arm guards. Rain thought Mercury's hair got even spikier then. Ember slashed her whip at Mercury, and it wrapped around his arms. She then flung him into the wall, and was occupied with him for a good while.

Then Emerald, Cinder's green haired comrade, pulled two guns out, her weapons, and readied to shoot at the pair that was attacking them. Fortunately, Crystal, her weapon in a shield form, blocked the shots from Emerald. Crystal had jumped over Cinder and Emerald to do so. Then Cirocco leapt, and slammed into Emerald from behind.

"Cinder's going to get away!" Ember said.

"Locaster's guarding the other exit," Crystal replied.

"Right," Ember said.

Crystal charged Cinder, smashing her weapon and turning it into a gauntlet shield and sword. Cinder had turned her dress into a more tactical combat suit with her abilities. She pulled dual swords on Crystal, and the two began a duel that words would only take away from. Every attack was carefully planned. With each block, the both gave ground. Whenever either of them thought the other was getting too good at predicting the other's movements, she would form a new weapon, and the battle would begin anew.

It was spectacular to watch, but no one could; Cirocco and Rain were having trouble with Emerald's aggressive strategy, while Ember was tiring from throwing Mercury around like a rag doll.

The battle finally broke, when Cinder whipped her flail at a power conduit. The tunnel fell into almost complete darkness, other than the glow of Crystal's halberd, Rain's conductor staff, and Ember's whip. Cinder took the opportunity to incapacitate all three with the glowing weapons, and then the emergency lights went on. Crystal's weapon was shards around her, and it didn't look to great for the others, either.

Cirocco stood alone. On one side he faced Mercury and Cinder, while on the other he faced an angry Emerald. He chose to leap to the roof, then ricochet back down to the floor behind the trio, and activate a special feature of his gauntlets. The blades of his gauntlets started shooting out, nearly cutting into members of the trio. He was having too much fun watching them run for the exit he wasn't blocking.

Then, something bad happened. He didn't know who did it, but the ceiling collapsed on him and his team. Only Crystal waking up and forming an aural shield along with Cirocco stopped them from being crushed.

When Rain and Ember woke up, they didn't need to ask what had happened. They were now trapped.

* * *

**How do like that? A team fight between Cinder's team and CCRE. Well, I certainly think this is at least better than chapter 11.**

**Anyway, see you next time.**


	14. Chapter 13: Cave-in

**I welcome you to the thirteenth chapter of Stories From Haven Academy. Now read, people of the internet! Read!**

* * *

All four of the huntsmen and huntresses in training were in sync when it came to holding up the ceiling. Otherwise, they weren't so good. Their aural shield not only stopped the rocks and metal, but also stopped the air. They weren't good at holding their silence, but they made an effort to anyway.

Their only light was Ember's staff, and Crystal's weapon that currently took the form of a round shield to allow equal distribution of light. Rain's conductor was too dangerous, as it was basically lightning, and nobody wanted to get fried.

Using her semblance, Crystal sent her consciousness out, and scouted around the outside area. Locaster had been knocked out and hidden. It didn't look good, and she would be in the hospital for longer than they had air. Nobody went through this tunnel much, so they wouldn't notice that a section of it had collapsed. Then, she got a little bored and began wandering.

When she came back, she was in the exact same spot; her comrades around her, all dying slowly of asphyxiation.

"I've got it," Ember said. "If I use my staff, I can fuse the rocks together, and they won't fall on us."

"Better than nothing: do it," Crystal said. They all lowered the aural shield for a moment, and Ember shot a fireball at the rocks, fusing them all together.

"Good, now we can focus on getting out of here," Rain said.

"None of us are that strong, Rain, we'd all tire out and suffocate," Cirocco said.

"No, I left a few cracks, we should be getting air," Ember said.

"Stop arguing!" Crystal was loud enough to get everyone's attention in the small cave. "There's two meters of rubble between us and the world, so let's start working. But I need to know Rain's and Ember's semblance's in order to plan accordingly."

"Alright, I've got invisibility, like that's going to help," Rain said.

"And I've got energy manipulation, but the power conduits have probably been cut off automatically because of the damage," Ember said.

"Alright, new plan: we wait until help arrives," Cirocco said.

"That could be days, and I don't think any of us would survive that long," Crystal said.

"Got any better ideas?" Cirocco replied.

Crystal was silent.

* * *

Storm woke up, finding all his teammates in the room. Storm thought it was good, as they had a long day ahead of them. However, jet lag was still a real problem for all of them, so he tried not to wake everyone up. He got his uniform on, and walked around the premises of the school.

He was overlooking the city of Vale, near the landing platform, when somebody came up to him from behind. "Hello, Storm." It was a woman's voice next to him. He recognized the voice.

"Hello, Pyrrah," Storm replied. "Did you get to be a team leader like Patricia thought you would?"

"No, Storm, no," Pyrrah said.

"Well I did, and Patricia went to paint school instead of Haven," Storm said.

"Congratulations," Pyrrah replied. "And I'm sure Patricia is happy there. Where is Rain?"

"I don't know anymore." Storm decided to change the subject. "Changing subject, who was that guy you were dancing with last, in the dress?"

"Jaune, our leader," Pyrrah replied.

Storm snickered. "I feel really sorry for your team, now."

"Don't be; he was just showing that he is a man of his word, even if that means putting on a dress." Pyrrah almost laughed at the end.

"Well, it's been good seeing you again," Storm said.

"And you as well," Pyrrah said. And they went their separate ways.

* * *

It had been a while since their past argument, and most of CCRE had cooled down. That's when Ember asked a question. "What are your guys' reasons for becoming huntsmen and a huntress?" Ember asked.

"Well, my family has been Huntsmen for as long as anyone can remember," Crystal explained. "Each generation passing down the Crystal Blades to the next generation. Usually it would be the oldest son, but when I was five, my mom died. It was the saddest thing I ever went through. But, my father saw this as the universe telling him I was supposed to be his heir to the Taryn Estate, and started training me. I am a master of every weapon the Crystal Blades can create, but I feel like this isn't me. When I was thirteen, my dad thought the same. So, I dyed my hair this shade of green and it's been that way ever since. The Taryn's Estate color was always been this shade of light green, so I did it to make sure my dad wouldn't think I was anything less than who he wanted me to be: a Huntress."

"I did it because my brother and I wanted to be heroes, and fight the Grimm," Rain explained. "But that's not just it. I became that way because I hated people telling me I couldn't accomplish my dreams, no matter what they were. So, I became a Huntsman to prove them wrong, and I'm kind of locked in at this point."

It took a lot of convincing, but Cirocco finally chose to talk. "I did it because of my family too, Rain, but not like you. My dad was killed by White fang guys, and from that day on, I became totally committed to ending both sides of the fight. I was going to fight the White Fang, and the take up their fight against the prejudice of humans. Only I'm going to do it right, in the light, not the dark. I hate exposition."

Then, all eyes were on Ember. "Since I asked, I might as well tell you my reason for becoming a Huntress; I owe you that much." Ember sat up, and started her story "I had always been good at fighting, and gone to a school to learn how to fight and all that, but the reason I went to Haven is the woman we're chasing: Cinder Fall."

"That's the same as you're last name, Ember. Are you related?" Crystal asked.

"Yep," Ember continued. "I found out her plan during the summer, and resolved that I had to stop her. I was tired of always resolving to something important, and never doing it. I had my dad's full support when I signed on for Haven."

Suddenly, the rubble started making sounds behind Ember. Ember backed away quickly, and a hole formed through the rock. Standing there was a man and a woman. The woman was wearing a white robe, and the man wearing a long black jacket, covering their other garments. The man wearing the black jacket put up his right palm. It was gloved, and the palm of the glove had a strange symbol on it that began glowing.

"You will forget all that you know of Cinder's plot," the jacketed man said in a voice that echoed. Then, the students collapsed, and when they awoke, they remembered nothing of any conspiracy done by a relative of Ember's

* * *

**Guess where the fourth wall break is in this chapter? Anyway, see you next week.**


	15. Chapter 14: Assignments

**So, does anybody know any good jokes?**

* * *

Feather was hanging out in front of the guest dorms, reading a book, when team CCRE showed up, looking horrible. They were still wearing their suits and dresses they wore the last night, but had thick layers of dust and debris over them. "What happened to you?" Feather asked, concerned for her fellow students.

"I can't remember," Crystal said, putting her hand to her temple.

"We were trapped in an access tunnel under the library," Cirocco said.

"What were you doing in an…" Feather started.

"We can't remember!" Rain said, almost shouting. "Why can't you just accept that we can't remember anything about what we were doing last night?" Feather ran off, her feelings hurt by Rain's tone.

Feather passed Azura as she was running, and quickly said to her, "Your date's back."

* * *

Storm and his team gathered in Beacon's assembly hall, as Professor Ozpin, the Headmaster of Beacon Academy, began a speech.** (For Ozpin's speech, watch RWBY Volume 2, chapter 8)** Ozpin's speech was quite inspiring, but still had a sense of warning.

After his speech, team SAFR was directed to several screens so that they could choose what would be their first mission. "What do you guys want?" Storm asked.

"A chance to show my fighting skills," Feather said.

"Some pretty ladies to save," Rusti said.

"Don't care, just pick one," Azura said.

Storm scanned the computer screen in front of him, and found a good mission. They were supposed to go defend a village outside of Vale. While it seemed a bit much for students, they would be accompanied by a fully trained Huntsman, who could definitely take on a hoard of Grimm. It noted that it would require them to leave immediately, and Storm was okay with that. He pressed "Defend Village" on the screen, and it opened up to another screen that asked for their team name. He typed in SAFR, and it told them to report to the landing pad at the front of the school. "Okay, let's go team SAFR, and defend a village!" Storm said, leading his team out of the assembly hall.

SAFR walked out, and heard somebody say, "Team coffee's back!"

"Who do suppose that is?" Feather asked.

"School celebrities, maybe," Azura said. She sounded unenthused.

"Hey, there they are, and look who's leading them!" Rusti said, pointing to the woman leading her other three students.

"Well, let's keep focused," Storm said.

"But my heart longs for…"

"I have seven different weapons that have firearms; all of them are fully capable of…"

"Just stop," Azura interrupted. She sounded like she was done listening to hormonal teens.

"Right, let's stay focused, and get to our mission- Hey, there's Rain!"

"Oh my gosh, that village is going to die."

Storm almost ran over to Rain. He really wanted an explanation for… everything, really. "Rain, what have you been doing?"

Rain sounded very sincere when he said, "I don't know."

Storm was confused. "What do you mean…"

"I just don't remember!" Rain sounded very angry, and Storm found that it was best not to mess with Rain when he was angry. "Sorry, I'm just really stressed by what's been going on. And I'm sorry for yelling at you earlier, Feather."

"Apology accepted, Rain," Feather said, "But I really shouldn't have kept bothering you."

"Let's just go with that you were both wrong, and just get to the mission." No one could argue with Azura's logic, so they halted their conversation, and continued their way to the landing pad.

The Huntsman waiting on the landing pad was a tall, slender man, with spiked black hair, a long crimson trench coat, black trousers, and a very cold aura. It was as if he had no emotion. Storm had thought that since Grimm were attracted by negative emotion, perhaps if one was devoid of emotion they could hide from Grimm.

"Come on, students," the Huntsman said. He turned, and started for the dropship on the landing pad.

"Wait, don't you want to know our names?" Rusti asked, following the Huntsman along with his team.

"Already do."

"Our team name?"

"Know it."

"Team leader?"

"Storm Sapphire; fellow in the red sweater."

"What about your name; shouldn't we know that?"

"Call me Qrow."

* * *

**So, anybody object to having Qrow in the story? No? Okay, see you next week.**


	16. Chapter 15: Hunters

**Welcome back. If you wanted a plot, another one's coming up soon. Mostly to set the tone for team CCRE. SAFR doesn't get much spotlight in the next few chapters.**

* * *

The passengers on the dropship were completely silent. There didn't seem to be anything to say. Qrow, the Huntsman that team SAFR was shadowing, seemed to know everything that he needed to know. Feather, however, knew almost nothing of Qrow, not even if that was his first or last name. It was safe to say that none of her comrades knew anything about Qrow either.

Finally, Feather asked Qrow a question. "What are we going to find at the village?"

Qrow was snapped out of whatever world his mind was focused on, and back to the here and now. "Grimm. Scared people. Hopeful people. Qrow fan-girls."

"Qrow fan-girls?" Rusti asked.

"Yes, I have fan-girls in this village." Evidentially, Qrow was very popular in the villages outside of Vale. "That's why I was sent on this mission: I've been to this village; they'll trust me."

"We're nearing the village," the pilot said.

"Good," Qrow replied and, possibly by intention, fell out of the dropship.

Feather and her friends looked out the opening of the dropship, and saw an amazing sight. He was falling head first until he twisted around in mid-air, now falling feet first, and then teleported the rest of the way down in a burst of rose petals. He took out a giant scythe, and began slicing through Grimm down on the ground.

"Drop us off here, pilot," Storm said. But that wasn't soon enough for Feather and Rusti. Feather jumped out, and extended her wings to fly the rest of the way down. Rusti, however, jumped out, fire bursting from his hammer, and smashed it into the head of a Beowulf. Before Feather could get to the ground, Storm jumped out too, and used the rocket packs on his shin guards to slow his decent to the ground while shooting at the Beowolves down there with his rifle. Feather had one word to describe the actions of her companions: reckless. But no matter what she called it, they were still going to fight Grimm.

Feather shot her blades at the Grimm on the ground, tearing through the hides of Beowolves and Ursai. Storm and Rusti shot, cut, burned, and bludgeoned their way through the Grimm. The fight was going well, and then when the dropship got close to the ground, Azura joined the battle.

When the fight was over, Feather went up to Qrow and asked, "Are you by any chance related to a Ruby Rose?"

* * *

At the same time, team CCRE was meeting the Huntress they would be shadowing. She was a young, blond haired huntress, with a green combat suit. She also bore a remarkable resemblance to Cirocco, in Crystal's opinion, but she could have just been seeing things.

The Huntress took notice of them, and looked somewhat surprised. "Hello, Cirocco," the Huntress said like that name was a swear word. She also had a similar accent to Cirocco's, and that made Crystal wonder even more what their connection.

"Hello, Clove," Cirocco replied. "Teammates, meet Clove Zaphyr, my sister." Crystal found that made sense, but it still surprised her. "Believe me, it wasn't my choice to work with her."

"It wasn't mine either, but can't change it now."

Clove turned around and led team CCRE to the dropship, all the while Crystal wondered why there seemed to be hostility between the two siblings. Perhaps the last time they met they did not leave on good terms, and still carried a grudge. Perhaps they had always felt this way about each other, Crystal didn't know, she was an only child. No matter why, they did not seem to like each other and it was unlikely that she could solve this conflict.

Once they were close enough to the airship, Ember noticed something. "There's no pilot!"

"I'm flying," Clove replied.

"Do you know how to?"

"Yeah, she does," Cirocco said. "She even has a license in Mistral, Atlas, and Vale."

"Actually, I got my license in Vacuo last month."

"And wait, didn't you lose your license in Atlas after that whole…"

"Hey, you can't prove that was my fault!"

"I don't think I need to; the Atlesean military proved it pretty well."

"I'm not even going to ask," Ember said. Crystal wanted to hear that story, actually, but wasn't going to ask for now.

Clove climbed into the cockpit, strapped herself into the pilot's seat, and presumably started some preflight checks. Meanwhile Crystal wondered about their mission. "What exactly does our mission entitle?" She regretted asking for a moment, but seeing as she couldn't take it back. "It said it was an Investigation of some kind, but it wasn't very specific."

Clove started up the dropship, and seemed to ignore the question. This infuriated Crystal. She wasn't used to being ignored, and it didn't make her happy when she was. She was about to say something when Ember cut her off. "So, what are we investigating?" That was the exact same thing she had asked!

"Onyxcorp, one of the only major companies with a Faunas CEO and founder." Why did Clove reply to Ember and not her? "We've received multiple reports that he may be White Fang. While it's probably just the hate mongering of some people who don't like Faunas, we should still check it out."

Crystal pondered the idea of the CEO of Onyxcorp being White Fang. There was very little to prove that, as he openly clashed with the White Fang on a regular basis. He was the primary weapons contractor of the military based in Vale. He had his own private army of robots and flesh &amp; blood humans, which he used to destroy White Fang bases in the surrounding area of Vale. He was a true Valen patriot, and had no tolerance towards his brethren, if they could even be called that, in the White Fang.

Yes, it would probably be what the professionals call "a routine mission". But if so, why bring a team? There might be some truth to the rumors, or it could be entirely false. They would only know when they got there.

* * *

**So, SAFR and CCRE have their missions. They seem ordinary. But anyone who knows anything about fiction know that almost nothing is what it first seems. Anyway, see you next time!**


	17. Chapter 16: Stakeout

**This is a short one. It is stunning how short this chapter is.**

* * *

The dropship landed on the roof, and team CCRE &amp; Clove got out. Clove stopped Cirocco before he got off, however. "You stay on the ship," Clove said.

"Why?" Cirocco asked.

"Because I can't trust you to keep the truth. Once we go in there you'll say everything, and afterwards you'll say everything. You're honest, and that's your weak point."

"Guilty as charged. But I won't stay on this dropship."

"I'm four years older than you are, and I say that you're staying on this ship!"

"I'm tempted to say 'make me', but I know how that ends, and I really don't want that to happen again."

"What don't you want to happen again?" Crystal asked.

"You really don't want to know," Clove replied. And that was good enough for Crystal.

"I'll take your word for that." And the matter was settled: Cirocco would stay on the ship, and Crystal wouldn't ask exactly what Clove would do to him otherwise.

When they arrived outside Mr. Onyx's office, they met his secretary. "How can I help you?" said the dark green haired woman behind the desk.

"We're here to see Mr. Onyx," Clove said.

"Fortunately, Mr. Onyx seems to have a clear schedule at the moment, so you won't need an appointment. Just let me ask Mr. Onyx."

She pressed a button on her desk, and a voice came through a speaker nearby. "Yes, Ms. Dale?"

"Mr. Onyx, a group of Huntresses are here to see you." Apparently she had noticed Clove's apparel, as she was the most obviously armored one of the bunch.

"I'm a guy!" Rain said indignantly.

"And there's one Huntsman," Ms. Dale added.

"Ah, send them in," Mr. Onyx said through the speaker.

Crystal, Raid, Ember, and Clove walked into Onyx's office. Onyx had black hair, antlers sticking out of his head, and wore a black suit. Onyx greeted them. "Welcome,Huntresses and Huntsman. I assume you are here about the reports?"

"Yes," Clove replied. Onyx's calm demeanor could visibly affect Clove. Crystal figured it was because she was used to people being offended at the notion that they were not what they seem.

"Well, I might as well tell you now: I told my employees to files those report," Onyx said.

Crystal was shocked. "What?"

"Yes. You see, I told them to because I need a way to contact you without being too obvious."

"Why?" Clove asked.

"The White Fang wants to kill me," Onyx said. "You see, the White Fang has become tired of me and my policies, and has decided to remove me from the equation."

"How do you know?" Ember asked.

"Earlier this week, my security chief found an unusual amount of cash in one of his personnel's desks. That very same person is going to be camera duty this evening."

"Why don't you just…"

"What? Take him off duty? If I do that, the White Fang could find out that I was onto them, and try a different method. No, I need you four to ensure my safety covertly."

"We actually came here with five," Rain corrected. "We left Cirocco in the dropship."

"Well, the more the merrier."

* * *

Clove had posted each of team CCRE at different points in the building. Cirocco was in Onyx's office, stealthily out of sight. Rain, despite being perfect for the office, as his semblance would keep his presence unknown to an intruder, was stationed on the roof. Ember could guess Clove's logic: While the office was full of hiding places, the roof had none, so to keep his presence hidden Rain's invisibility would be needed. Crystal was at the loading docks, and Ember was in the security offices.

By how Ember had been receiving reports from her fellow team members, Clove was going around asking Ember's teammates what their motivations for being a Huntsmen or Huntress were. Seeing as how Clove was coming her way, Ember decided to remind herself what she was fighting for, when she came to a startling conclusion.

"So, Ember, what's your reason for becoming a Huntress?" Clove asked.

All Ember could respond with was, "I can't remember."

* * *

**So, did anyone see that coming? Well, you should have. Anyway, see you next week!**


	18. Chapter 17: Nightfall

**This one is a little... dark, to say the least. The first part is fine, but the second is definitely T for teen.**

* * *

As Feather watched the sunset in the village, she was reminded of how many times she watched it. She must have seen it a thousand times. Okay, maybe not that many times, considering the weather of her home town, but she had still seen it many times.

At one time, she had tried painting the sunset, but found her minor skill in painting was not enough to capture the beauty of the burning ball of gas that the planet hurls around at unbelievable speed.

She, her team, and Qrow had made their way to the village, and found a hero's welcome. He really was popular in this town.

This village didn't care if you were Human or Faunas. Feather considered moving to the town after she was done with her training. They could always use more Huntresses.  
She climbed down from off the roof of the building they were staying at, and through the window of her room. Actually, it wasn't her room; she was sharing it with Azura, as they were both girls, and their hosts believed that made them okay with each other. In reality, they were quite different, and only got along because they didn't really find a problem with each other. Ever since a couple of weeks ago, Feather and Azura had been growing apart as friends, and it troubled Feather somewhat.

Feather could only imagine how Storm and Rusti were getting along, though. Or rather, not getting along.

"What were you doing on the roof?" Azura asked. All Azura did when getting ready for bed was take off her duster and the armor around her torso. She had a tank top on and her regular pants. Feather could only guess how comfortable or uncomfortable it was for Azura in the… whatever material those pants were made of.

"Just watching the sunset," Feather replied. She didn't like being accused of anything, but this was Azura, who had been quite friendly around her in the past.

"Okay, just asking," Azura said. Feather was relieved.

Azura was working on her weapon, specifically the ammo capacity. Feather remembered Azura had talked with Storm about doing so, but that was a couple of months ago. What made her so busy?

She then remembered that she hadn't done maintenance on her own weapon, Ace, recently. She decided now was as good a time as any to do it.

The mechanical workings of her weapon are far too complex for me to describe, or for most to understand, so I will transfer to another scene if you don't mind.

* * *

Clove couldn't believe her ears. "You can't remember why you want to become a Huntress?" Clove asked.

"Yeah, and I don't know why," Ember replied. It was unbelievable. Clove wanted so badly to hope that it was some kind of horrible, sick joke, but the look on Ember's face was one of confusion, not simply jesting.

"Have you suffered a recently blow to the head?"

"Maybe, we were trapped under the library at Beacon for a while in a cave-in of sorts," Ember said.

"A cave-in?" Clove still was in shock about how dumb this girl must be. She was this close to throttling Ember, but she stopped herself. "How could you forget the one, central ideal that you base your ENTIRE life around? Distain for evil. Want for romance. Being really good at fighting. Family tradition. All of these things are suitable answers but not I don't know!"

Ember looked as if she was about to crumble. Perhaps she had been a little too rough on the girl. She couldn't take back words, and she still had her anger, but she could feel the guilt in her soul. "I'm sorry for exploding, but it's something that I just can't compute," Clove said. Ember was looking a fraction better.

Their moment was interrupted by Cirocco on the comm. "Someone's busted through the window, and it's… Oh, it's you!" Cirocco said the last part with unparalleled rage from all of Clove's memories. He was suddenly cut off, but before then they could here sounds of battle.

"We'd better get up there," Clove said. She called Rain and Crystal, but they both seemed to be fighting different opponents.

As they burst into Onyx's office, battle ready, she saw the attacker, and a fury beyond anything Cirocco could be feeling ignited in her body. Clove could tell by the spikey red hair and horns on his head, and non-standard Grimm mask that the man Cirocco was fighting could only be Adam Taurus, and the man who murdered her father.

She extended her armblades, and brought them down on Taurus's head. He was surprised at the attack, and decided to retreat back through the window.

"Oh, no you don't!" Clove shouted after him. She leapt out the window, and fired two energy blasts from her forked armblades. She had studied her for so long, his fighting capabilities, his weaknesses, that she could kill him without him even having a chance. His sword could absorb almost any kind of energy, except for aural blasts, and that was exactly what she poured into her armblades. He drew his sword in a futile attempt to block the attack, and he was just so pathetic against her blast.

Taurus smashed into the pavement outside the loading docks of the building. Clove fired upwards, speeding her down wards faster, and then dug her armblades into the building to slow her decent.

When she got down there, she found Crystal without an opponent. "What are you doing? Where's the intruder?" Clove asked.

"Well, that guy kinda landed on her, so…" Crystal said, trailing off. Clove would usually laugh at such a coincidence, but she was in full vengeance mode.

She walked over to the rubble and human forms, and retracted her left armblades. Picking up Taurus by the collar, she put her right blades to his throat. "Give me a # %* why I shouldn't kill you?!"

"Who are you?" Taurus said.

"I'm the girl who was walking with Jay Zaphyr the night you killed him!" Clove said. "I am the girl who watched in horror while her father was being brutally murdered before her eyes! I was the girl that you took a father, a leg, and an eye from for no reason at all!" Even now, the feel of her prosthetic leg and the feeling of a computer in her brain were still as horrible as the day she woke up from the anesthetics. "Now give me a *#%#*% reason why I shouldn't give you the same treatment!"

Taurus struggled to say his next words. "Because then you'll end up like me."

* * *

**Okay, so I threw in another character we don't know much about into the fray. I am so happy this is just fan fiction, and not some comic book or anything. This way, I can completely be wrong about the subject, and at the same time, not get chewed out for it. It is a good day to realize this.**


	19. Chapter 18: Truth or Lies?

**After the _drama_ of last chapter, how will it be resolved?**

* * *

Clove couldn't believe Taurus's words. She almost dropped his collar at the words. "What the *#% do you mean?" Clove couldn't help but ask.

"We're not that different," Taurus said. "Both of us have been driven to learning combat out of vengeance. Both of us are brutal, and modeled our combat tactics after the one who killed our parent or parents. And we both have similar outlooks." He removed his Grimm mask to reveal two glowing, electronic eyes. They were primitive compared her right eye. Even the poor could have found a group generous enough to give him some that were better in the last fifty years, but he was a Faunus, and they may have been discriminatory against them. She had heard of these kinds: they hurt, and not just physically, but people would alienate those with glowing, demon-like eyes.

Clove let go of Taurus, and staggered back. She couldn't believe it was possible for her to feel sorry for him.

Taurus put his mask back on, and walked away.

"Why are you letting him get away?" Crystal said behind Clove. Clove just couldn't answer that question.

The white robed woman on the ground groaned. Crystal remembered her, and put her claymore to her throat. "Who are you?" Crystal asked.

"I… am someone you don't want to mess with," the woman said. She summoned a giant boulder to crush Crystal. Crystal just barely had enough time to dodge.

She was about to reform her weapon into a battle axe when Rain came down to the ground. He electrocuted the strange woman, and she fell to the ground.

"Where were you?" Crystal asked.

"Fighting some guy on the roof," Rain replied.

"What happened to him?" Crystal asked.

"He's… not on the roof anymore."

Crystal would have laughed had she not found where he was. She used her semblance to search for him. She knew what he looked like because she had checked it out when the attack began. He was a man with black hair and a long black coat. And she found him in Onyx's office. Crystal snapped back to her body, and told everyone the bad news. "He's in Onyx's office!"

"What? He was flying off the building," Rain said.

"I know what I saw was right," Crystal said. "Let's go, quickly."

While the others left, Clove stayed behind to take the white robed woman into custody.

Crystal and Rain ran into the building, and came across a problem. They didn't know which way would be faster: the stairs or the elevator. Crystal decided that Rain would take the elevator, and she would take the stairs.

Crystal was running up the stairwell, constantly checking the status of her teammates. Rain was still in the elevator. Ember and Cirocco were fighting the intruder. And Clove was carrying the white robed woman over her shoulder like a barrel. It astonished her how strong Clove was.

When Crystal arrived a few floors below the floor with Onyx's office on it, the intruder burst into the stairwell. He immediately saw Crystal, and jumped into the hole in the middle of the stairwell. It was probably to avoid capture, but that was pretty extreme!

Crystal jumped after him, and began a pointed descent. Crystal quickly caught up to the intruders, and grabbed onto him. The intruder whirled around and his glove palm began to glow. It then formed a platform below them, which the intruder quickly got off of and back onto the stairs. The platform disintegrated, and Crystal began falling again.

Crystal drew her weapons, and smashed them against the stairs speeding past her head. It then formed a long pole, and she stuck it between the landings of the stairwell. She stopped with a snap, and held on for only a second before letting go.

The rest of the fall wasn't that far, so she probably would be… Suddenly, a green blur slammed into her, and sent her into the wall. Clove had done this for her.  
"I take care of my students," Clove said before running up the stairwell.

Crystal just focused on how much pain she was in. First there enormous pain in her left arm where she had felt a snap when she tried stop herself earlier. There was the pain in her side where Clove slammed into. She was just in complete pain everywhere else though, from slamming into a wall.

Then, the throbbing in her head took over, and she slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

Storm was waiting outside on the porch of the house with Feather for their teammates and Qrow. Storm had out Excelsior, and was aiming for a can that Feather had set up several paces away. He was seeing how good he was at aiming at small stuff instead of giant Grimm. Also, there was a bet.

"So if I make this shot, you have to say a tongue twister," Storm said. "And if I don't make this shot, I have to say a tongue twister."

"Yes, and you cannot use Typhoon," Feather replied. That was a good idea. Too bad he hadn't thought of it.

Then he remembered something. "What about Peregrine?"

"Peregrine?"

"Yes, my new weapon," Storm said. He pulled out two white armblades that looked as if the blades were lasers. In fact, they were lasers. He then put them together and they shifted into a bow with a glowing bowstring.

"I suppose you can use that," Feather said. She was obviously surprised by the new weapon. It was surprising the rate with which he made these weapons.

He pulled back the bowstring, and a shaft made out of energy appeared. It was time for the first actual test of Peregrine. He released, and it shot the can right through. "Yeah!" Storm said excitedly.

"Very well, I will say a tongue twister," Feather said. She had a dreading tone to her voice that made Storm think that she did not like tongue twisters. "Any suggestions?"

"Picker Piper."

"Oh dear. Not that one," Feather said. Her dread intensified. "Very well. I will do Picker Piper." She breathed in deeply, and began. "Peter Piper picked a pick of pep- ah!" She really wasn't good with tongue twisters.

Qrow brought Azura and Rusti out of the house, and met with the two outside. "We will go now, Storm. Feather."

"Right behind you, sir," Storm said.

* * *

**In case you were wondering: no, I do have empathy, but it's just not directed to fictional characters much (unless it's a special case, in which I will cry when Optimus Prime dies, or feel triumph when the rescue Ben Skywalker from Jacen).**

**Anyway, see you next time!**


	20. Chapter 19: Motivations

**So, this one has too many scene changes. Yeah, that's it. That's all I'm saying about this chapter at this time.**

* * *

Qrow and team SAFR had just torn through another pack of Grimm. They were quite effective fighters, all things considered.

They were just about to head back to the village when Qrow stopped and asked Feather something. "What is your reason for becoming a Huntress?"

Feather had made her reason clear to her teammates. She supposed that it was only fair to let Qrow know. "I do so as to become a beacon of hope for other Faunas. By my example, I wish to show the world that Faunas are equal to humans in every way."

"Nice reason. Too bad it's a lie," Qrow said. The words outraged her. There was nothing more insulting to her than saying that she had lied.

"I assure you, it is not…" She trailed off.

Qrow began again. "I've seen you fight. I've seen the emotion on your face as you fight. You fight because it gives you the feeling of accomplishment that nothing else can."  
Feather looked at him. She could have been angry, but she was more distraught. His words had rung true. She loved to be the beacon, but Qrow's words were dead on the mark when it came to explaining her. She didn't know what to do anymore, and just started back to the village along with her teammates.

* * *

Sometime later, Storm was questioned. "Why do you want to become a Huntsman?"

"Because I feel it is my duty to do so," Storm said. "Mistral gives me a place to live. I should defend it to the best of my ability."

"But you're still afraid of the danger," Qrow replied.

"True, but look at those things! They're scary all right."

"A true Huntsman doesn't need to be afraid."

* * *

Azura had been given a question. "Why do you want to become a Huntress?" She had the reason, but was hesitant to tell it.

Finally, she spoke up to Qrow. "I became one because it is my destiny. My one goal is to fight, and protect my people."

"Didn't figure you as the destiny type," Qrow replied.

"Eh. My village loved that sort of thing. Helped me become the person I am today. And I wouldn't take any of it back." She took a breath in. "I love what I do, and nothing's going to change that."

Qrow had a satisfied look on his face. "Right answer."

* * *

Rusti was as happy as could be. He was going to be the hero at the village and the ladies. But he couldn't help but remember his brother.

"What's your reason for becoming a Huntsman, Rusti?" Qrow asked. The question caught him off guard.

He quickly recovered. "Why, for the ladies, of course." That didn't seem to satisfy Qrow. "Okay, it was mostly for my brother."

"Your brother?" Azura asked. "I didn't know you had…"

"I don't talk about him much because… I don't know how to talk about him," Rusti explained. He was trying to find the best way to say it, but he couldn't find that way. "Well, let me start at the beginning. My brother always wanted to become a Huntsman. Always.

"But then he found out that he had a condition where his bones break more easily than a normal human's. He was crushed. Emotionally, not physically." He found when that didn't draw a laugh that he had to keep going. "So, I decided to fulfil his dream for him, and become a Huntsman."

He looked back at Qrow and Azura. "Right answer."

* * *

Storm and Feather, both confused after their conversations with Qrow, decided to speak with each other.

"Feather," Storm started. He couldn't think of the words to continue. Finally, he spoke up again. "Feather, I just wanted to explain something that I can't talk to Qrow about because he wouldn't understand."

"Okay," Feather replied.

"You see, I feel that it's my duty to protect Mistral, but I'm still scared," Storm explained. "But he sees it as a poor reason to be out here if I'm scared. Well, I'm scared but my duty makes me realize that I can't afford to be scared. It's why I can pull the trigger on a gun. That's courage, not fearlessness. In fact, if anyone's fearless, they're crazy."

It was Feather's turn. She took a breath in before speaking. "I am here because I am a Faunus. That is true. But I am also here because I want to be more than just a scared little girl, or a freak. I want to become a Huntress so that others will treat me as an equal.

"But, as for my joy in combat, the answer is simple. I like being able to fight back. It gives me confidence, and lets me believe that there is nothing in the world I cannot accomplish." She took in another breath. "I fight because I am."

"Right answers," Qrow said from behind them. They snapped around to see him walking behind them.

"How long were you there?" Storm asked.

Qrow shrugged. "Long enough to hear your monologues. Those are some pretty good reasons, actually." He turned his gaze away from them, and beyond them. "We're coming up on the village."

"Great, time to pick up some ladies," Rusti said.

Then, Qrow's scroll started to beep. He took it out of his pocket, and opened it. The look on his face changed from emotionless, to grim and resolute. "Vale is under attack."

* * *

**Okay, so this is the last chapter of Part 1. However, I did make an epilogue, so you'll be seeing it next week. Full details for why I'm stopping (for now) in that post. Anyway, see you next time.**


	21. Epilogue

Crystal woke up in a hospital bed. Her left arm was in a sling, but the rest of her seemed fine. Other than the throbbing in her head, of course.

She felt like there was some battle going on in her mind. As if there was something fighting to get out.

Storm was waiting beside her bed. She felt like that needed a response. "How long was I out? Last I remember, you were on a mission."

"You were knocked out last night, and right now it's about three in the afternoon," Storm said. "Also, I came back from the mission with the rest of my team just after the attack."

"Attack?"

"Yeah, the White Fang unleashed bunch of Grimm into the city. The Huntsman and Huntresses that were here took care of them, though." At least it was under control.  
Suddenly, Storm seemed to remember something. "Hey, I made a powered cast for you while you heal," Storm said. "It should allow you to fight with both arms in the tournament while your arm gets better."

"Thanks," Crystal replied.

Soon, Ember arrived. "Hello, team leader," Ember said.

"Fancy seeing you here, Ember," Crystal said. While the pain in her head had mostly gone away, for some reason she felt that Ember should not be here.

"Yes, well, I have someone here who dying to meet you," Ember said. Then, a woman with characteristics like Ember came into vision. The only difference was her age, and the burning orange eyes. "Crystal Taryn, meet Cinder Fall."

Crystal remembered.

To be continued…

* * *

**So, Part 1 ends. The reason? While I have assumed much about Haven, I do not want to assume to much about the story, and since I have caught up with the story, thus ends Part 1. Part 2 will be written some time after the RWBY Volume 3 ****finale (early January at the latest).**

**However, while this series is taking a break, expect stories about the individual characters from Haven. I have three stories written, which will come out on Mondays only. I'll also probably post non-RWBY stuff because my whole life is not RWBY. I like Star Wars.**

**Anyway, see you next time.**


End file.
